OK, so we all know that cars have got heavier all of a sudden in recent years (as I showed once on a very, very lonely evening the latest Corsa weighs the same as the earliest Astra). Presumably due to the fact they make cars out of girders to ensure their crash worthiness (crash worthiness?! What a funny expression!).
This evening I saw a 1.5-tonne weight limit on a bridge... seriously, 1.5 tonnes, 1500kg. My 'small family hatch' weighs 1150kg kerbweight, 1260kg including me (my Mum really outdid herself this Christmas ). So, no problem for me provided I don't have a bunch of fat mates in the car.
But, what about poor Eddie and his Japanzer? With a kerbweight far in excess of 2000kg, I guess that means it would be totally illegal for owners of such vehicles to cross such bridges. Looking at the Ford website, about 80% of Mondeo models exceed 1500kg kerbweight. In fact, I have seen quite a few 2-tonne limits which would still mean no big 4x4s. Eddie, is there a big sticker on your sunvisor advising you of minimum headroom and maximum weights?
Now I originate in a rather well-populated part of Surrey, yet still the bridges over the Thames are several miles apart. If you are in the middle of nowhere, unfamiliar roads, and come to a 1.5-tonne bridge in your 2.5-tonne car, will you really say "Oh no, I better turn round and find a different way to get across the river!"? Especially if you know that the next-nearest bridge will probably be a 20-mile detour? Thinking about it, if I was going up to say, Fort William, I would probably choose a Range Rover over a Rover, just in case I fancied (or had to) take it off-road.
Send for the special doctor, I'm thinking too much again
This evening I saw a 1.5-tonne weight limit on a bridge... seriously, 1.5 tonnes, 1500kg. My 'small family hatch' weighs 1150kg kerbweight, 1260kg including me (my Mum really outdid herself this Christmas ). So, no problem for me provided I don't have a bunch of fat mates in the car.
But, what about poor Eddie and his Japanzer? With a kerbweight far in excess of 2000kg, I guess that means it would be totally illegal for owners of such vehicles to cross such bridges. Looking at the Ford website, about 80% of Mondeo models exceed 1500kg kerbweight. In fact, I have seen quite a few 2-tonne limits which would still mean no big 4x4s. Eddie, is there a big sticker on your sunvisor advising you of minimum headroom and maximum weights?
Now I originate in a rather well-populated part of Surrey, yet still the bridges over the Thames are several miles apart. If you are in the middle of nowhere, unfamiliar roads, and come to a 1.5-tonne bridge in your 2.5-tonne car, will you really say "Oh no, I better turn round and find a different way to get across the river!"? Especially if you know that the next-nearest bridge will probably be a 20-mile detour? Thinking about it, if I was going up to say, Fort William, I would probably choose a Range Rover over a Rover, just in case I fancied (or had to) take it off-road.
Send for the special doctor, I'm thinking too much again